Door hanger and track



jap. 2.6, 1937. H 5 HARVEY l 2,068,674

DOOR HANGER` AND TRACK Filed Nov. 8, 1934 77 ze 76 z2 15 5 stares rarest orrlor;

DOOR HANGER AND TRACK Henry S. Harvey, Palm Beach, Fla., assigner tc Claire H. Harvey, Palm Beach, Fla.

Application November 8, 1934, Serial No. 752,164

(Cl. 1li- 88) 2 Claims.

This invention relates to sliding doors and more particularly to a novel track arid door hanger construction for supporting the door so that it will slide freely and noiselessly.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a novel track and door suspending hangers which are in effect complemental parts and which may be easily and economically made in the respect that they may consist of rolled sections or shapes that may be fabricated in any suitable length to provide a basic stock from which the track may be cut in any selected length to meet the specifications of a particular installation, while the hangers may be likewise rolled and pre-cut to the desired length and furnished in any required number to properly support the weight and size of the door. In that connection the invention contemplates a construction consisting of relatively few strong and rigid parts thereby not only enhancing the durability of the construction, but also simplifying installation in the respect that many fixtures or accessories often used are eliminated, and consequently reducing the initial cost, that is, the cost of production, as well as the labor cost in installing.

Another object of the invention is to provide a track and hanger construction which utilizes rollers or balls as the traction means thereby permitting of making the track and hanger parts of minimum size and maximum compactness, while at the same time providing less friction between the sliding parts, thereby resulting in marked ease of operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide track and hanger parts which may be fitted with hard fibre inserts to provide a raceway for the rollers or balls thereby further lessening the sliding friction between the track and the hanger and serving to further minimize or reduce the noise incident to the shifting of the door on the track.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a novel arrangement for mounting the track which permits of mounting one end thereof in a door pocket after the pocket and its curtain wall have been completed. In many cases where sliding doors retreat into a pocket, it is necessary to leave the wall which conceals the pocket open until after the door has been installed, but according to the present invention, that is not necessary and the track may be mounted in an otherwise concealed pocket through the medium of novel track fastening and supporting means.i

With the above and other objects in view which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination andV arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully 5 described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:-

Figure l is an elevation illustrating the present improvements.

Figure 2 is an enlarged detail vertical section- Yal view of the track and hanger.

Figure 3 is a detail sectional View taken on thev line 3 3 of Figure 2. -15

Figure 4 is a detail View illustrating the manner of forming the track so that it may be engaged with a support concealed within a door pocket.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the ,several gures of the drawing.

In its primary aspect, the present invention essentially includes a supporting channel or track member designated generally as A and one or more hangers B for supporting and suspending a door C.

The track A is preferably a rolled channel member of substantially angular C-shape in cross-section and includes an attaching base I having the fastening receiving ange 2 at one side thereof and the abutment ange 3 at the other. The base I is formed with a downwardly depending web l formed with a laterally offset rail portion 5 preferably parallel with the base l.

The door hanger B is also preferably a rolled channelv member of substantially angular C- shaped cross-section reversed with respect to the member A so as to intert with the track, and, as shown in the drawing, may include an upper supporting flange 6, a vertical web 'l and a lower laterally offset and horizontally extending suspending fiange 8. The outer side of the web 1 may be provided with an abutment roller or disk 9 adapted to engage with the abutment flange 3 of the track when the parts are assembled so as to prevent binding of the hanger on the track in the event that the door strikes an obstruction or is otherwise caused to lift relative to the track. 50

The inner faces of the rail portion 5 of the track and the supporting flange u are provided respectively with grooves or runways Ill and Il, the groove lll extending continuously throughout the length of the rail and the groove 6 preferably extending the full length of the hanger. These grooves cooperate to form a complete raceway for receiving the rollers or balls I2 of a traction unit T (Figure 3). In the example shown, the traction unit comprises roller bearings of the ball type which are suitably spaced and held in position by a carrier frame I3. This frame is preferably made continuous between hangers lB and extends or projects beyond the door C as indicated in Figure l, and the ends IA are provided with the stop fastenings or screws I5. As the door is opened, it moves at one speed, while the ball carrier I3 moves at a slower speed, consequently it is necessary that the ball carrier I3 be longer than the width of the door or window opening. That is to say, when the door or window is completely opened, the hanger B will touch or engage the left-hand fastening I5 (Fig. l), While on the other hand when the door or window is closed, the right-hand hanger, in Figure l, touches or engages the screw or fastening I5 on the right-hand side. The traction unit is thus interlocked with the hangers so as to compel proper movement of the anti-friction elements and prevent overrunning of the hanger with respect to the balls when the door or other closure member is shifted on the track relative to the door or window opening. Thus, it will be apparent that the traction unit may be 1ead1ly fitted between the rail 5 and the supporting flange 5 and after insertion may be readily held in place by the fastening means I5 which 1s readily accessible When the occasion arises.

The roller or ball receiving grooves IS and II may be formed in hard fibre inserts or shims I6 which are fitted in suitable recesses I'I in the members r5 and 6. These recesses are preferably of the key type and correspond to the shape and contour of the inserts. When the bar stock which vforms the track and the hanger is rolled, these recesses may be preliminarily formed in the members 5 and 6 by an initial rolling operation before the members are rolled into final offset relation to the webs Il and 1. Then, after the grooves are partially formed, that is with straight sides, the latter may be undercut to form the desired key by a suitable milling tool or cutting wheel. After the key recesses have been formed in the members 5 and 6, the hard fibre inserts I6 may be driven into place from the end of the groove. In the case of the hangers B, the inserts maybe held in recess I'I by the locking plates Ia at the ends of the hanger. These plates may be held by the screws 5b or their equivalent..

The suspending flange 8 of the hanger B may loosely receive a threaded bolt 20 whose head 2l engages the inner face of the member 8 while the threaded shank thereof carries a lock nut 22 and is intended to engage in a threaded opening in a plate or strip 23 secured to the top of the door C.

By turning the bolt 2B in the member 8 and also in the member 23 the door C may be adjusted to the desired height from the ground and when the selec-ted .position is reached, the lock nut 22 may be clamped against the under side of the member 8 thereby to prevent the bolt from turning loosely in the supporting flange and consequently maintaining the door in the desired position. Any desired 'number of door suspending bolts 2.0 may be used, and it will be apparent that the heads -2I thereof may be engaged by a suitable tool 'inserted from the end of the vhanger to attain the desired adjustment after the door is mounted thereon.

Another feature of the invention resides in providing means for facilitating the mounting of the track A in eventv that a portion thereof is intended to be mounted Within a concealed door pocket P. It will be observed from Figure 4 that the end of the web I may be notched, cut away, or otherwise formed as indicated at 24. In the example shown, the notch is preferably of flaring formation so that its inner end will have a wedging engagement with the shank of a headed fastening 25. This fastening is preferably a lag screw which is fitted to the joint or beam which is intended to provide a mounting for the track before the door receiving pocket is enclosed during the building operation. The pocket may be completely built after the lag screw is in position, and then when it is desired to install the track, it is only necessary to insert the end of the track having the notch 2li into the pocket and hook it over or behind the head of the lag screw. Since the lag screw or other fastening is rigidly fixed to the support for the track, it will be apparent that when the notched end of the track engages therewith, it will be securely held in place. When the fastenings 26 are put in place, to hold the remainder of the track to the supporting surface, it will be impossible for the track to become disengaged with the lag screw, and on the other hand the fastenings 26 may be removed whenever desired due to the fact that they are placed in an accessible position outside of the pocket, to remove the track from the pocket.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a construction which is strong, durable, rigid and very compact, while at the same time capable of sustaining and supporting considerable load. For example, a track only two inches deep will support a load of 240 lbs. when the track is fastened at points only ve feet apart. On the other hand with a two inch track fastened at points eighteen inches apart, it will be possible to support and sustain a load of approximately 1800 lbs. Moreover, the present invention provides a construction which lends itself to being made in stock sizes and lengths in such a way that the track can be fabricated to suit the specificationof a particular job, while the hangers and track units may be fabricated beforehand and assembled at the point of installation. Also, the particular type of traction means employed provides a track of maximum silence in operation whether the raceways are of metal or hard bre.

Without further description it is thought that the features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will of course be understood that changes in the form, proportion and details of construction may be resorted to, Without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:-

1. A door hanger construction comprising a track member including a horizontally disposed base having a flat top adapting it to be secured against the under side of the top element of a door opening, a vertical web integral with said base and depending therefrom intermediate the side edges thereof, a rail formed as an integral lateral extension of said web, a door hanger including a vertical web and upper and lower anges integral therewith and extending laterally therefrom, the web of said hanger extending across the free edge of the rail above and below said rail, the upper flange of the hanger extending into the space between the base and the rail of the track member, the lower flange of the hanger extending beneath the rail, means for fastening a door to the lower flange of said hanger, anti-friction rolling bodies between the rail and the upper ilange of the hanger, the top face of the upper ilange of the hanger being disposed closely adjacent to the under face of the base of the track member, and rollers carried by the hanger at the outer side of the upper ilange thereof and projecting slightly above the upper face of said upper ange for cooperation with the base of the track member.

2. A door hanger construction comprising a track member of rolled stock including a horizontally disposed base having a flat top adapting it to be secured against the under side of the a vertical web and upper and lower flanges inn tegral therewith and extending laterally therefrom, the web of said hanger extending across the free edge of the rail above and below said rail, the upper ange of the hanger extending into the space between the base and the rail of the track lo member, the lower ange of the hanger extending beneath the rail, means for fastening a door to the lower flange of said hanger, and anti-friction rolling bodies between the rail and the upper flange of the hanger, the top face of the upper 1:

flange of the hanger being disposed closely adjacent to the under face of the base of the track member.

HENRY S. HARVEY. 

